John Muir Trail: Day 4

From Crabtree Meadow I had two choices.  I could follow the JMT along Whitney Creek, past Guitar Lake, ascend Whitney and return the same way, or I could cross Crabtree Meadow and follow Crabtree Creek to Upper Crabtree Lake.  The first way would have to be done in one day as there are no good campsites past Guitar Lake.  The second way would put me back on my original path at Upper Crabtree Lake with only Crabtree Pass cut out.  I would be able to ascend the talus slope to Discovery Pinnacle that I had been looking forward to.

The change of plan in Miter Basin had put me behind schedule.  I was supposed to summit Whitney on day 3 and now it was going to be either day 4 or day 5 when I got to the official start of the JMT.  As I lay in my tent that night, planning the next day, I realized two things.  I had been able to pack an extra day of food, so I had started with 14 days of food instead of the planned 13, and I had a scheduled rest day at Bench Lake.  I could get back one day by skipping the rest day and could borrow the second day from the second half of the trip thanks to the extra food.  I knew that I would be able to cover more ground in the northern half, so just like that I was back on schedule and was going up Crabtree Basin.

My daily progress and major trail milestones can be seen at https://caltopo.com/m/DKGD, or on Google Earth using https://www.dropbox.com/s/9cy12lzxnuvatsa/2017.07.30_JMT_Actuals.kml?dl=0.  The caltopo website is the best place to look to find the place name I use.

Day 4 elevation profile in yellow

Day 4 route in blue

It was going to be another short, easy day to set up for the difficult day tomorrow.  I wandered down to Crabtree Meadow, then followed the trail up to the Crabtree Ranger Station looking for the trail to Crabtree Lakes.  Not seeing it, I returned to Crabtree Meadow and went off trail across Crabtree Meadow and up to Crabtree Lakes.

Crossing a meadow is not as easy as it sounds.  Meadows are not like fields of grass.  They are wet, boggy fields with streams running through them.  Crossing the meadow in this case meant walking around it, being pushed further and further out to find firm ground to walk on.

Crabtree Meadow.  Mount Whitney is the rounded mountain in the middle.
Mount Russell is the sharp peak to the left of Whitney.
Mount Hitchcock is the mountain in the foreground to the right of Whitney.

I never did find the trail below Lower Crabtree Lake.  I made my way up the canyon using a map and compass to help with directions.

Just before Lower Crabtree Lake I was taking a break, lying on the ground, when a couple and their teenage son came by.  We talked for a while before I realized that I was lying in the middle of the trail.

Lower Crabtree Lake

Probably the most scenic part of the Crabtree Lakes was the view of the Great Western Divide across the Kern River.  On the west side of the Kern the granite peaks were much darker, almost black, compared to the relatively light grey granite on the eastern side.  With the snow capped peaks and the clouds providing contrast it made for a stunning sight.

Looking back at Lower Crabtree Lake with the Great Western Divide in the background beyond the Kern River.

Middle Crabtree Lake is the gem of the three lakes.  I wandered around its shore until they became steep, then went up high looking for a campsite.

A sandy beach on the northern shore of Upper Crabtree Lake

Just before the shore got too steep for me to continue I came upon the leg bone of a large animal, maybe a deer.  There are predators in the mountains, but they hardly ever are seen or heard.

The bones from an animals leg on the shore of Upper Crabtree Lake.

I found a great area to camp.  To the east I had a view of where I was going the next day.  Mount McAdie dominated the valley that lead up to Upper Crabtree Lake.  Turn right at Mt McAdie and you go over Crabtree Pass to where I had been the day before.  Turn left at Mt McAdie and you climb a talus slope to Discovery Pinnacle.

Camp 4.  Looking east at Mount McAdie.

To the west I had a great view of the Great Western Divide.  The sun was going to set right in the middle of this picture and I was going to be able to sit in camp and just enjoy the view.  Then the rain clouds moved in.

Rain clouds moved in from the west soon after I made camp.

I cooked quickly and cleaned up.  With everything in order I crawled in my tent just as the rain started.

Watching the rain from my tent.  Looking west across the Kern River at
Triple Divide Peak (directly under the d-rings on my tent) and the Great Western Divide.

I enjoyed watching and listening to the rain until after dark.  As I lay there falling asleep, I started hearing running water, turned on a light and discovered I was camped in what had become a stream.

I packed up my sleeping bag and other things into waterproof bags and put on my rain gear.  I crawled outside, dropped my tent, dragged it out of the stream and set it back up.  I crawled back inside and dried off the best I could.  When I was satisfied that I would stay dry I brought my sleeping bag back out and went to sleep.

All pictures of Crabtree Meadow
All pictures of Crabtree Lakes